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Today:
Trump’s chaos-inducing global tariffs, explained in charts

NEWS | 04 April 2025
Donald Trump’s announcement of a long slate of new tariffs on the US’s trading partners has caused chaos in global markets and threatens a global trade war and US recession. Though the tariffs won’t go into effect for a few more days, global markets have been reeling from the announcement of what’s to come. Here’s a breakdown of what the tariffs are and how they’ve affected the economy since Trump’s announcement. Then, on 9 April, certain countries will see higher tariff rates – what Trump has deemed “reciprocal tariffs” in retaliation for tariffs the countries have placed on American exports. “The global economy will massively suffer,” she said Thursday.

Top Stories:
Trump tariffs live: US markets see worst day in five years as president claims ‘stock is going to boom’

NEWS | 04 April 2025
The main indices saw their worst one-day falls in five years as Donald Trump claimed that “the markets are going to boom” in response to his sweeping tariffs. The main indices saw their worst one-day falls in five years as Donald Trump claimed that “the markets are going to boom” in response to his sweeping tariffs. Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs were mostly criticized by farm and food groups for their potential to shrink markets for farmers and raise prices for consumers. Several members of Donald Trump’s embattled national security council have been fired, Axios reports. Share3h ago 17.42 EDT Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One today that tariffs on imported semiconductor chips and pharmaceuticals will be coming “soon”.

World:
At least 27 killed in Israeli bombing of shelter in Gaza City, rescuers say

NEWS | 04 April 2025
An Israeli bombing of a school turned shelter in Gaza City has killed at least 27 people, rescuers said, and hundreds of thousands in the Rafah area are fleeing in one of the biggest mass displacements of the war amid Israel’s newly announced campaign to “divide up” the Gaza Strip. In a statement, the Israeli military said it had taken precautions to avoid civilian casualties in the bombing of what it described as a control centre for the militant group Hamas. The Israeli military said on Thursday it had struck more than 600 “terror targets” across the strip since resuming large-scale airstrikes on 18 March. On Wednesday, Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said the army was “seizing territory” and “dividing up” Gaza. Israel’s retaliatory military campaign has killed at least 50,357 people in Gaza, most of them civilians, according to the territory’s health ministry.

Current Events:
Pentagon launches investigation into Pete Hegseth’s use of Signal app after sensitive information leak

NEWS | 04 April 2025
The inspector general of the Department of Defense (DoD) is launching an investigation into Pentagon secretary Pete Hegseth’s use of the encrypted messaging app Signal to discuss sensitive information about military operations in Yemen. “This chat was alleged to have included classified information pertaining to sensitive military actions in Yemen,” the senators wrote in their letter. The White House and Hegseth himself have aggressively maintained that the Signal messages were merely “team updates” lacking classified sources or methods. Hegseth’s messages even included the phrase “clean on OPSEC” – operational security – implying he recognized the sensitivity of the information being shared. The inspector general’s evaluation will be conducted in Washington and at US Central Command headquarters in Tampa, Florida, with additional locations potentially coming as the investigation proceeds.

News Flash:
Trump fires six national security staffers after meeting with far-right activist Laura Loomer

NEWS | 04 April 2025
Donald Trump fired six national security council staffers after a fraught meeting in the Oval Office where the far-right activist Laura Loomer presented opposition research against a number of staffers that she said showed they were disloyal to the US president, according to two people familiar with the matter. The firings encompassed four staffers who were fired overnight, after the meeting, and two who were removed over the weekend. It created the extraordinary situation where Loomer appeared to have more influence than the national security adviser, Mike Waltz, over the NSC and undercut Waltz in having aides axed under him. While the firings appeared arbitrary, one of the people said that the White House looked through Loomer’s opposition research and verified parts of it. The online vilification of Waltz and his team took a turn on Wednesday when Loomer appeared at the White House for the meeting.

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SPONSORED | 04 April 2025
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Latest:
Donald Trump ordered to pay £626,000 legal costs after Steele dossier lawsuit

NEWS | 04 April 2025
Donald Trump has been ordered by a judge in England to pay more than £620,000 in legal costs after unsuccessfully suing a company over denied allegations he took part in “perverted” sex acts. The US president brought a data protection claim against Orbis Business Intelligence, a consultancy founded by a former MI6 officer, Christopher Steele, in 2022. In a witness statement, Trump said he had brought the case to prove that claims in the Steele dossier, published by the BuzzFeed website in 2017, that he engaged in “perverted sexual acts” in Russia were false. Many of the claims in the dossier were never substantiated and lawyers for Trump said the report was “egregiously inaccurate” and contained “numerous false, phoney or made-up allegations”. Steele was paid by Democrats for research that included salacious allegations Russians could use to blackmail Trump.

Breaking:
Trump news at a glance: Tariffs send US markets tumbling to worst day since Covid crash

NEWS | 04 April 2025
Global financial markets were roiled by Donald Trump’s latest tariff announcement – with trillions of dollars knocked off the value of the world’s biggest companies and heightened fears of a US recession. In the US, the main indices saw their worst one-day falls in five years as the president claimed that “the markets are going to boom” in response to his sweeping tariffs. The scale of the sell-off highlights just how alarmed investors are by the tariffs, and the fears they could lead to a recession. Here are the key stories at a glance:Catching up? Here’s what happened TTKTKT.

Trending:
Musk to remain ‘friend and adviser’ to Trump after leaving Doge, says Vance

NEWS | 04 April 2025
JD Vance said on Thursday that Elon Musk would remain a “friend and an adviser” to the vice-president and Donald Trump after he leaves his current role with the so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge). For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotionDespite Musk’s 130-day cap, Doge is expected to continue until 2026, as a result of Trump’s executive order. Musk invested millions in the race, in what what became the most expensive judicial contest in US history, and also spent time campaigning in the state.

This Just In:
Hungary to pull out of ‘political’ ICC as Netanyahu visits Budapest

NEWS | 04 April 2025
Standing beside Netanyahu at the start of the four-day visit, Orbàn said Hungary was convinced the “otherwise very important court” had “diminished into a political forum”. In principle, Hungary, a founding member of the ICC treaty, should be required to detain and extradite anyone subject to a warrant from the court. Budapest, however, argues it never promulgated the law, so ICC measures cannot legally be carried out within Hungary. France has said Netanyahu should be immune from the warrant since Israel is not an ICC member. It has opened more than 30 cases for alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and offences against the administration of justice, but is hampered by a lack of recognition and enforcement.

Today:
Ukraine war briefing: Kyiv solving its troop shortages, says top US general in Europe

NEWS | 04 April 2025
He also underscored that any US cutoff of weapons and intelligence would be extremely harmful to the Ukrainian war effort, despite Kyiv’s attempts to diversify its weapons suppliers. A Russian drone attack on Kharkiv hit dwellings and triggered fires late on Thursday, killing at least two people and injuring 32, local officials said. Kharkiv, in north-eastern Ukraine, has been subject to nearly nightly Russian drone attacks in the past week. Since launching its full-scale war on Ukraine in 2022, Moscow has waged a Soviet-style crackdown on rights groups and NGOs. Protectionism will not do us any good.”The US has withdrawn from the ICPA, an international group collecting evidence of potential Russian war crimes in Ukraine, the president of its parent body, Eurojust, said on Thursday.

Top Stories:
Mehmet Oz confirmed by US Senate to lead Medicare and Medicaid

NEWS | 04 April 2025
Former heart surgeon and TV pitchman Dr Mehmet Oz was confirmed on Thursday to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The 64-year-old will manage health insurance programs for roughly half the country, with oversight of Medicare, Medicaid and Affordable Care Act coverage. Oz will take over the CMS days after the agency was spared from the type of deep cuts that Kennedy ordered at other public health agencies. Separately on Thursday, a federal judge will temporarily block Donald Trump’s administration from cutting billions in federal dollars that support Covid-19 initiatives and public health projects throughout the country. The lawsuit said losing the money would devastate US public health infrastructure, putting states “at greater risk for future pandemics and the spread of otherwise preventable disease and cutting off vital public health services”.

World:
Murders of two female students prompt calls for a ‘cultural rebellion’ in Italy

NEWS | 04 April 2025
There have been calls in Italy for a “cultural rebellion” amid outrage and protests over the murders of two female students found within 48 hours of each other, bringing the number of femicides in the country since the start of the year to 11. Stefano Argentino, a fellow student at the University of Messina, was later arrested in the town of Noto. His lawyer, Raffaele Leone, told the Italian press that Argentino, 27, had confessed to the murder. The Messina prosecutor, Antonio D’Amato, claimed Argentino had “insistently and repeatedly” harassed Campanella since she started her university course two years ago. The murders sparked protests in Messina, Rome and other Italian cities, including Bologna, on Wednesday night.

Current Events:
Bonobos may combine words in ways previously thought unique to humans

NEWS | 04 April 2025
Bonobos use a combination of calls to encourage peace with their partner during mating rituals, research suggests. “Human language is not as unique as we thought,” said Dr Mélissa Berthet, the first author of the research from the University of Zürich. Yelps – thought to mean “let’s do that” – followed by grunts – thought to mean “look at what I am doing”, were combined to make “yelp-grunt”, which appeared to mean “let’s do what I’m doing”. The combination, the team said, reflected the sum of its parts and was used by bonobos to encourage others to build their night nests. This combination was used to smooth over tense social situations, such as during mating or displays of prowess.

News Flash:
The Gaza paramedic killings: a visual timeline

NEWS | 04 April 2025
23 MarchAt 4.20am, a Red Crescent ambulance on its way to collect people injured by an airstrike in Rafah comes under Israeli fire in Hashashin. 30 MarchOcha officials and Red Crescent workers return to the site and find the bodies of eight Red Crescent workers, the five other civil defence responders and one UN staff member buried in a mass grave. A ninth Red Crescent worker remains unaccounted for. A satellite image shows the scene of the attack, with the Ocha convoy lined up to the north. He says he witnessed the wreckage being buried by military bulldozers, and that he saw the missing Red Crescent worker, Assad al-Nassara, alive and in Israeli detention.